Quality Questioning – The Heart of Great Teaching
High-quality questioning is one of the most powerful tools a teacher can use in the classroom.
It’s not just about getting answers – it’s about driving understanding, uncovering misconceptions and building a culture of thinking and curiosity.
Great questioning allows our teachers to be truly responsive, adapting their teaching in real time to meet pupils’ needs.
This approach is grounded in research, including the work of Barak Rosenshine, who emphasises the importance of checking for understanding and engaging all learners. We go beyond simply asking more questions – we focus on asking better questions. Most importantly we focus on breaking down barriers to communication, making our questioning accessible and inclusive.
Our staff are highly skilled in working with pupils to find the best way for each individual to be included. Amongst other things this can include individuals writing an answer on a mini whiteboard, individuals whispering an answer to an adult or individuals typing an answer to show an adult.
As a school, our warm pupil-staff relationships are pivotal and this is the cornerstone which enables us to check for pupil understanding in individualised ways which enable our pupils to overcome barriers.
Other techniques we can apply include:
- Checking for Understanding: Teachers ask several students to explain their thinking behind an answer. This gives immediate insight into how well concepts are understood and allows misconceptions to be addressed straight away.
- Probing Questions: We encourage follow-up questions like “Why do you think that?” or “Can you explain further?” to deepen thinking and reasoning.
- Say It Again, But Better: If a student gives a vague answer, we can ask them to rephrase or expand it. This promotes clarity and develops oracy.
- Think, Pair, Share: This means students first consider a question individually, then discuss with a partner before sharing with the class. This helps everyone rehearse and refine their thinking.
- Whole-Class Response: Tools like mini-whiteboards give teachers a snapshot of understanding across the room, helping them adapt instruction as needed.
At Woodbridge Road Academy, questioning is more than a strategy – it’s how we ensure every child is actively learning, thinking, and progressing. It’s a vital part of the excellent teaching we are committed to delivering every day.